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Tamesa's Tom Cronje has created a novel design "cancer
zapper" which could have major implications for future cancer treatment
research.

Cronje has designed, built and refined a machine
that kills cancer cells using electricity.

The high frequency, high voltage pulser is used
for electroporation of tumours. Electroporation is where an electric field
pulse temporarily breaks down a cell membrane, making it easier to administer chemotherapy
drugs.

"The
membrane is broken down so that the drugs can get in more easily. This means
less drugs have to be administered which also means fewer negative side effects
for the patient," Cronje says.

"This has potential benefits for cancer treatment
and patients."

The design is cutting edge and surpasses any commercial
equipment for electroporation in terms of technical capabilities, and offering
new possibilities for research and clinical purposes.

Cronje has been using liver and cultured human
cancer cells in order to test his machine.

"I've been cultivating these cells and testing
them with the machine. Dye allows me to see how the cells are affected."

The machine uses two other methods to fight the cancer as well as
electroporation- radio frequency ablation and irreversible electroporation.
Radio frequency ablation uses high frequencies to burn the tissue, in a manner
similar to cauterising, while irreversible electroporation kills groups of
cancer cells.

Other studies have shown that there are exciting
opportunities for further research when using both higher frequencies and also
bipolar electrical fields, compared to what is widely used at present.

"The project has a strong focus on application in
cancer therapy," Cronje says, although he will not participate in clinical
trials himself.

To further his research, Cronje is exploring
using higher frequencies for electroporation of tumours like liver cancer. There
is strong evidence from other studies suggesting better performance at higher
frequencies. He is also exploring the radio frequency ablation system.

Cronje has already presented his works on "High
voltage and frequency bipolar pulse generator design for electroporation-based
cancer therapy" at the Proceedings of the Australasian Universities Power
Engineering Conference.